ELL: an update on the Transparent Language Systems offer

[David Harris]

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	      From: "David Harris" <dharris at las-inc.com>
	      To: <endangered-languages-l at carmen.murdoch.edu.au>
	      Subject: ELL: an update on the Transparent Language Systems
	      offer
	      Date: Thu, 1 Apr 1999 15:01:56 -0500
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	      I went to the Transparent website and read a little more about
	      TLS's offer
	      to provide templates for producing endangered-language tutorials
	      and was
	      disappointed to discover that TLS wants $100,000 per
	      language. This is the
	      amount of money a group will have to come up with for the TLS
	      templates
	      alone. In addition, some monies will be necessary to fund for
	      designing the
	      lessons, gathering the texts, producing the recordings, etc. So
	      it doesn't
	      sound like the great deal it did at first.

	      Presumably, the Navajos or the Cherokees could figure out a way
	      to raise
	      that kind of money. But the money could presumably be put to
	      better use on
	      improving the living conditions of tribe members. Also, their
	      languages
	      aren't nearly as endangered as, say, Euchee or Oneida, languages
	      that are in
	      danger of dying out in this generation. It seems to me that TLS
	      has made/is
	      making money off these templates in their sales of French,
	      German, Spanish,
	      Italian, Russian, and other CDs. They could also work out an
	      arrangement to
	      sell the endangered-language CDs and make money off those,
	      too. So why do
	      they need to request so much money for the templates themselves?

	      If just ten tribes take them up on the offer and manage to raise
	      the money
	      for the project, TLS will be a million dollars richer. And they
	      want to be
	      viewed as philanthropically oriented for this offer! I think
	      it's a nice
	      offer, but, frankly, I don't think it's nearly as generous as it
	      could be.
	      And I seriously doubt many seriously endangered languages will
	      benefit from
	      the offer.

	      What do others think about this? I know that many on the list
	      don't feel the
	      technology would be very beneficial to the speech communities,
	      anyway. But
	      I'd be interested in hearing some opinions. Am I wrong to think
	      that
	      $100,000 is an awful lot of money?

	      Thanks,

	      David Harris
	      Washington, DC

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